Evening Republican, Volume 15, Number 194, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 17 August 1911 — Page 2

Records of MICHAEL DANEVITCH

1 True Tales gs Russian Secret Service | Edited by GEORGE T. PARDY

The Fate of Vassilo Ivanoff Vassilo Ivanoff was by profession an architect. He was also an artist of some repute, and two or three of his pictures had found a place on the 'walls of the St. Petersburg salon. His friends sometimes rated him for demoting too much time to painting picfores that did not pay, and too little to his profession, which did pay. He 'had long been engaged to Maria ▲lexeyevina, who had the reputation -of being one of the most beautiful young women in St, Petersburg. She 'ipas a member of a poor but exceedingly good family. The marriage of the young couple had been delayed on the grounds that Ivanoff could not afford to keep a wife until his financial position improved. Among IvanolTs friends was one Rlskoff, who was said to be wealthy ■and also exceedingly practical, and Ivanoff was In the habit of consulting him about many things. Rlskoff, ■knowing that his friend was improvident, as well as Impractical, strongly Advised him to ddtfcy his intended marriage. Ivanoff was headstrong, <and Rlskoff was persistent, with the result that the lifelong friends quarreled, and the two, who had been like brothers, passed each other by as if they were strangers. Ivanoff kept surging his sweetheart to consent to their marriage until finally she yieldAd and they became man and wife. The first year of their married life "Was a happy one, but romance cannot -last forever, a fact of which Ivanoff -eras soon to prove the truth. To his korror he found that he was on the merge of bankruptcy. He realized that %e was completely ruined; and to much an extent did the discovery affect him that one night he was seen *£ a fashionable case in a state of intoxication. Some acquaintances tried to persuade him to go home, but his excitement only increased, and he was heard to exclaim: "It is a shame that I should be poor when there are thousands less worthy rolling in wealth. I feel as if I could murder Chose who hoard their gold when so many are suffering for the want of common necessaries.” This Outburst of passion was due, no doubt, to his condition, but it was a dangerous sentiment to express in n Russian case, though but for subsequent events no importance would Have been attached to it Finally Ivanoff went home, and on the following day resolved to appeal for help to his former friend, Rlskoff. With that Intention he went to the latter's house, but found he was out, and as it was "uncertain when he would return, 'Vassilo asked for pen and paper and ’wrote a letter, begging Rlskoff to lend him two thousand roubles, promising faithfully to repay the loan in •lx months’ time. The next day he received the following reply: ••Dear Ivanoff: — 1 am surprised after the coolness 'there has been between us of late that ■you should apply to me for assistance. I was your warm friend once, but you thought proper to trifle with any friendship, gb-there's an end of it It will not be of any use for you to write to me or call here again, as tomorrow morning I shall set off on a Journey to visit my estates and shall not be back for a month." Deeply hurt by his friend’s contemptuous refusal, Ivanoff showed the letter to his wife. Up to that time ■he had not realized that matters were quite so bad, and in a fit of petulance and wounded pride she hastily put on her cloak and bonnet and went off to her parents. Soon afterwards her unhappy husband also went out and was absent for some hours. In the evening his wife returned, accompanied by her brother. She had repented her hasty action, and in the meantime Ivanoff had also ■come back. He appeared to be in a much happier frame of mind, and Maria's brother witnessed a pleasant reunion. He spent the evening with them. Before retiring Vassilo told his wife that he was in funds again and «11 would be well. He laughingly remarked that he couldn't explain his Cood lack Just then, but would do so later on. Tbe next day Ivanoff rose early. He attended to some business matters, paid several of the most urgent claims against him, and in the evening he and his wife dined at their own bouse in company with •ome friends. In the midst of the dinner the company were startled by the violent ringing of the door bell. Tbe servant hurried to the door, and on opening it was confronted by an official known as a Judge of Instruction, accompanied by his two legal assistants and two armed policemen. "I must see your master, Vassilo Ivanoff, at once,” said the judge sternly. The servant led the way to the dining room, followed by the official and bis men. ’ Addressing the assembled guests the judge said curtly: "I am here on very serious bust Mad. Ivanoff. yon are accused of having committed n murder. Tour farmer friend, Mr. Rlskoff, to dead

(Copyright by W. a. Chapman)

and It to suspected that you killed him.” Ivanoff, pale an<i trembling, rose and faced his accuser. “This must be some absurd mistake,” he said. “Why, I was with Rlskoff yesterday." “Yes, that fact is well known. Soon after you had left his house be was found dead in his library." The judge’s assistants had produced their note-books, and while one wroto the questions and replies in shorthand the other took them down in long-hand. _ “You possessed a revolver?” asked the judge. , "I did,” replied Ivanoff, “but I lent It to my friend Rlskoff at his request. He told me he was starting to visit his estates, and as he was without a revolver mine would be useful to him." “For what purpose did you take tbe revolver to Riskoffs house?” asked the judge. “I went to my friend to entreat him to lend me some money,” faltered the accused man. ‘1 took the revolver with me, determining to shoot myself if he refused.” The judge produced a revolver. "Your friend was slain by a bullet from this weapon,” be said coldly. “Do you recognize it?" Ivanoff bowed his head in assent. “Your name is engraved upon it,” continued the Judge. “It was picked up on the floor of his room. Rlskoff had been shot In tbe back of tbe head The murderer, therefore, was behind him. Let me see what money you have In your possession.” Ivanoff produced a well-filled pocketbook. The judge took it and disclosed a packet of new notes. He examined them carefully and consulted certain memoranda he had made in his notebook. “Here we have damming evidence,” he said. “Rlskoff drew a large sum of money in notes from his bankers yesterday. These notes are part of those he received from the bank.” Mrs. Ivanoff uttered a low moan of agony. “Vassilo, what does thin mean?” she exclaimed. “It is some hideous mistake," he «>swered. “God grant it may be bo,” she sobbed. "But I remember Riskoff's reply to your application for a loan. And now be is dead, your revolver is found in his house and you are in possession of notes drawn by him from his bank.” “So Rlskoff wrote to you?" broke in the Judge. Staring at tbe official like a man in a trance, Ivanoft produced the letter he had received from Rlskoff, wherein the latter had refused point-blank to lend the money, and handed it to his inquisitor. The judge perused the missive and turned to hiß men. “This piece of evidence is final,” he said harshly. “I charge this man with being the murderer of Rlskoff. Secure him and bring him along.’’ In accordance with the mode of procedure peculiar to Russia, the suspected man was conducted to the office of the criminal prison, where he was subjected to another cross-exam-ination. He was then consigned to a secret cell, which meant that he would be kept isolated until the police had worked up sufficient evidence to secure his conviction. The case against Ivanoff seemed clear. The public condemned him from the first. There was the letter which Rlskoff had written, refusing to lend the money applied for. Yet within thirty-six hours of that letter being written Rlskoff was discovered dead in his own house. He had that very morning drawn from his bank a large sum of money. A portion of that money was found in the prisoner’s possession. Rlskoff had been shot from behind. A bullet had entered the back part of his head, producing instant death. The weapon was the property of Ivanoff. On his own confession the latter had visited Rlskoff. He knew that he was about to set out on a Journey. He knew also that Rlskoff would draw money from the bank for the expenses of hie journey. Therefore, having been refused the loan he had asked for, he went to the house with the deliberate Intention of killing and robbing his erstwhile friend. After the first shock of her husband’s arrest had passed, Mrs. Ivanoff rose to tbe occasion and startled everyone she knew by declaring her positive belief in tbe prisoner's innocence. She succeeded in obtaining a government order which granted her a twenty-minutes' Interview with Vassilo. Thus husband and wife met again, but it was in a dismal Jail, and they were separated from each other by an iron grill. Although little more than a week had elapsed since tbe nigbt when the suspected man had been arrested, a terrible change had taken place In him. He looked ten years older, and his face was haggard and ghastly. Ivanoff swore earnestly by all that a Russian bolds most sacred that be was innocent Wildly be lmplered his wife to do mil in her power to effect his release, otherwise he declared that he would In a short tine be raving mad. When the devoted wife emerged from the dark-

ness of the Jail she felt like one who Md come out of a tomb, where she had looked upon death. In her hour of distress she remembered all she had heard regarding the acuteness and kindness of heart of Michael Danevltch, the famous government detective. She sought him out and told all the facte of the case before him. He consoled her |y a pledge that he would examine the case from every possible point of view. Nearly a week passed before she saw him again.

“There to one curious point,” he said, “that makes the evidence against the accused weak, to my mind,” he said, “and yet nobody seems to have noticed It. On the day that Rlskoff was murdered he drew from the bank three thousand roubles. Your husband had one thousand of this sum, according to his own statement, and the most critical investigation has failed to prove this statement false; not a rouble over and above tbe one thousand has been traced to his possession. Now, if your husband killed Rlskoff for the sake of his money, why did he only take one thousand roubles? And if he left two thousand behind, what has become of them? From this circumstance I draw an inference which on tbe face of it seemd to corroborate'your husband's assertion of his innocence. Mark you, I only say it seems to do so, but my doubt of his guilt is strong enough to persuade me to look further into the matter. If I make any progress I will notify you.” * Weeks passed and It was rumored that the prisoner had confessed. All that remained, therefore, was to bring him up for trial; which would be a mere matter of form, and fix the date for' his punishment. At last he ap-

peared before the judges. When the prisoner appeared at the bar those who had known him previous to his arrest were shocked. They saw now an old, white-haired man, with a haggard, hunted expression of face, and a wild stare in his eyes, as if he had suffered' some tremendous mental shock. He was but another victim of the pitiless Russian secret Jail system, having been chained, tortured and punished until he had become imbecile. The counsel for the prosecution appeared to have an easy task before him. He went over all the damming evidence, ang to make assurance doubly sure, there was the prisoner’s confession, taken down from his lips in his cell by the Judge of Instruction. Amidst a hush that was painful, tbe counsel tor the defense arose and said: *1 ask either an immediate acquittal of the prisoner on the grounds of lack of condemnatory evidence, or an adjournment of the trial for a few days, when I shall be able to prove his innocence. Riskoff, tbe murdered man, drew three thousand roubles from his bank on tbe morning of his death. One thousand roubles only were traced to tbe prisoner. All tbe money was In small notes. I have here one thousand five hundred of the missing two thousand. There are witnesses present from the honk who can Identify every note. We hope to regain the other five hundred shortly.

These notes were not in the possession of the prisoner, hot of another man, the man who committed the murder, and who win yet be broaght to justice. The prisoner at the bar to innocent” When the excitement caused by this startling announcement had subsided the Judge declared that no verdict would be given thnt day, but the case would be put. back for n fort* night As Mrs. Ivanoff was leaving tbe court she was approached by Danevltch, who shook her hand warmly. “Don’t let the report of your husband having confessed trouble you,” he said. "A confession wrung from a prisoner Is not always reliable. Vassilo’s story to that he visited Rlskoff, who repented of hlg hastiness, and said that had your husband not called he was going to write him a letter of apology and enclose him one thousand roubles. As It was, he banded him the money, for which your husband gave a receipt as an acknowledgment. Subsequently on Rlskoff saying that he was going to a gunsmith’s to buy a revolver to take with him on his journey, your husband pulled his own revolver out and offered iff to his friend. At first this story seemed improbable, but now I am convinced that it is true.”

It was upon the theory that a third person had become aware of the monetary transaction between Ivanoff and the murdered man that Danevitch set to work. Riskoff had led a bachelor life. His household consisted of two female servants and a man servant. On the morning of the crime the man had gone to the market. One of the females was an old woman who had been in the service of the family for fifty years, and had nursed Riskoff

when he was a baby; the other was a girl of eighteen. The old woman at the time was sick in bed. Consequently the girl, Olga by name, was in charge of the house. She admitted Ivanoff and very soon afterward her master and the visitor went out and were absent nearly an hour. Her master told her that he was going to the bank to draw some money for his journey on the morrow. The two men returned together. About half an hour afterward she opened the door for Ivanoff to depart The murder was not discovered until the return of the man-servant. Then Olga went to her master’s room to inquire whether he intended to dine at home that evening. On opening the door she was horrified to find her master lying dead on the floor. Such was Olga’s story, and it seemed probable enough, but Danevltch was not satisfied. He had a private Interview with the old housekeeper and questioned her about the girl. “Did she know,” he asked, “if Olga had a lover?” “Yes, a soldier named Andrey, who had been to see her the previous day. He was stationed at Cronstadt, hut was on furlough, and passed through St. Petersburg on hto way to visit hto parents, who resided at a place called Ladeinoe Pole, a little village lying to the north of St. Petersburg and east of Lake Ladoga.”

: "Whs Audrey at Hie house « the day of the murder?" The housekeeper did not know. She thought not But still he might have been without her knowing it Pursuing his inquiries, Danevltch found that this soldier had left St Petersburg for his home the night of the murder. Danevltch followed him 1 there, but found on hto arrival that, Audrey's furlough being up, he bad returned to Cronstadt The parents were poor peasants, but Danevltch learned that quite recently they had purchased a horse and two cows. Tbe soldier son had no doubt provided them with the money. Danevltch, however, was aware that however dutiful and affectionate the son was, he could not save from his pay a sum sufficiently large for the* purchase of two -cows and a horse. The pay of the Russian private is about one cent a day. It is therefore impossible for him to save money. Also it came to the detective’s knowledge that AndreyvitCh, the father of Andrey, was carrying on negotiations with a man named Weissmann for the purchase of a little plot of land in the village. At last a bargain was struck and Andreyvitch paid one hundred roubles as earnest money. The hundred roubles was paid in notes. They formed part of the amount Riskoff had drawn from the bank. Thereupon Danevltch confronted Andreyvitch and demanded to know where he had got those notes. The old peasant answered that he had received them from his son. “Where did the son get them?” The father understood that his son had found a roll of notes, and though he ought to have delivered them at the bureau of police, his affection for his poor old parents prompted him to

commit a breach of the law by retaining the money and giving it to his father. “Had the father any more notes?” Yes, he produced a roll of notes to the value of one thousand five hundred roubles. The old folks had already spent about five hundred roubles in the purchase' of the cows and horse and In clearing off certain debts. With tbe money In his possession, Danevltch returned to St Petersburg and handed It over to the defending couneel in time for bim to make bis dramatic coup in court. Tbe next step was the arrest of Olga and Andrey. They were arrested simultaneously, though one was in St. Petersburg, the other in Cronstadt. The woman was terrified at first, but speedily became sullen, and refused to answer any questions. Not so Andrey; he at once confessed that he had stolen the money, but vowed that be did not commit the murder. “Who did commit the murder, then?” He believed that Ivanoff did. All that he knew about it was what his sweetheart bad told him; she said she found her master shot. He was lying on the floor, with a bullet wound in hto head, and on the table was a pile of bank notes. She asked him to go to the room and take the notes, which he dUL Danevltch saw at once the dl»

crep&ncies in this tale. It was not at all likely that Ivanoff would have gone away leaving a large number of notes on tbe table. So Olga and Andrey were sagh consigned to a secret dungeon. In the course of a week the discipline of the dungeon Ufa had worked its effects on Olga, and with blanched lips she related the foUowlng story to the Judge of Instruction: Her soldier lover had come to see her two days before tbe crime, and unknown to her master she had kept him In the house during those two days. On the morning of the crime, when her master and Ivanoff returned from the bank, she had to go to the room to take in some refreshments. She saw a heap of notes on the table; she heard the conversation about the revolver, and saw Ivanoff band the weapon to her master. When the visitor bad departed she thought how easy it would be to murder the master, take his money, and let it seem afc if Ivanoff had done it. Her fellowservant was ill in bed; the man-ser-vant, was out. Her lover was at hand, and nobody knew that he was there. She hurried to him and told him all. He was entirely under her influence. She went to her master’s room again; the notes were still on the table, so was the revolver. He was busy making up his books and did not appear to notice her. As she removed a tray containing glasses and biscuits, she secretly took away the revolver also. Then she went to Andrey, gave him the weapon, and they returned to the room. She opened the door softly; Riskoff was sitting at the table with his back to them, still writing; With cat-like caution Andrey crept in on his hands and knees behind the unconscious man. He raised the revolver, took steady aim and pressed the trigger. The bullet sped true to the mark and Riskoff fell to the floor without uttering a sound, with a terrible wound in his head. They approached him and ascertained that he was quite dead. The aged, half-deaf housekeeper in her room In the top part of the house had not been disturbed by the report of the weapon which ended her master’s life. All had gone well for the conspirators. Audrey took the notes nod the ceipt given by Ivanoff to his friend for the thousand roubles, and immediately left the house. In six months’ time he would be drafted into the reserve; then Olga and he would be married and go to live with his people. It seemed impossible that anybody would suspect them of the crime. They had framed their plans too cunningly for that. Without a doubt suspicion would fall on Ivanoff, who was known to have been with his friend that afternoon. The evidence was assuredly strong enough to convict him; he would probably die, and dead men tell no tales, so there would be an end of the episode. All would undoubtedly have turned out as the criminals hoped had not Fate willed that Marie Ivanoff should appeal to Danevltch and interest him in the case. The horrible story told by Olga was corroborated in every detail, and the receipt given to Ivanoff by Riskoff was recovered. Andrey expiated his crime in the rdines and Olga was sent to Northern Siberia for life.

Ivanoff was released and his friends hastened to assure him of their sympathy for his sufferings. But although his name was cleared of all taint of suspicion and his honor restored to him, the unfortunate artist had undergone too many hardships In the secret dungeons to rally from the shock. He was a mental wreck, and the devoted wife who had fought so hard for his liberty was fated to see her beloved end his days in a lunatio asylum, an innoceht victim of the unrelenting rigor .with which the Russian government treats suspected of fenders against the law. Michael Danevitch had established his innocence in the eyes of the world, but could not save him from the living death to which a cruel fate had doomed him. '

Pride and Wealth. Wealth built a splendid mansion and Invited Pride to Inspect It. Pride came gladly, but found fault with the house and everything In It from cellar to garret. "Why,” said he, "Competence has as good carpets and furniture, and Well-to-do has more costly draperies and pictures and a much more elegant main staircase. Furthermore, I see you have consulted Convenience In regard to some of the arrangements, and this I can construe only as a bitter Insult to myself. To placate Pride, Wealth sold his house for a fraction of Its value and built a far more costly one. This time Luxury, ahd not Convenience, was consulted, and the result pleased Pride so well that he took up permanent quarters In the mansion. He Invited In his comrades, Vanity, Ostentation, and Prodigality. Wealth was the only one who could not see that the house he had paid for belonged, not to himself, but to Pride. Moral: Wealth builds and Pride oo> cupies.

Sick of Them. “Mean bachelors!" * Said one hostess. "They're sponges, and yet—*' Said the second hostess. "They’re simply necessary furnl* ture,” Remarked the third woman. "They never pay party calls or make any return!" Was the exclamation of the fourth hostess. “But who has the courage to teach him his duties?*’ Was the challenge of the fifth and last of those who ask him In spite at it aU. / 'V- f